As his brothers unloaded the carriage, Nicholas stared with a solemn face at the ruins of what used to be his home, his true home, where he found not just himself but a purpose for his life, a reason to live for, a family that understood and cared for him, and a lover he was willing to die for, the place was where his heart lived, until his blood brother destroyed it, the brother he wanted nothing more than to burn alive and watch as he screams in agony, the same way he burned the holy tower.
Nicholas swallowed the heavy lump in his throat as he passed the charred remains, it has been two years since the night of the raiding and two years since he came back to this place, there was nothing left to come back for except for the burned stones, crumbled walls, pain, and memories, a lot of them, and they all rushed back to him at once, swallowing him back into that swamp of bitterness while his brothers, his real brothers, the ones he chose, were busy emptying the bloodied sacks o
“This…” Henry tried to find appropriate words but there were none, he thought the chaos in the capital was something to worry about, especially with the way Eren was acting, the shadows’ lord who was flying near the castle chose to remain silent since they found the shredded bodies, but the moment the report arrived about the holy tower, he knew things were going to be more than just chaotic.“I…” once again, he wanted to say something, anything to break that unbearable silence that settled on the group of people, humans and demons, he was with but nothing came out, there was nothing there to say, only a hope that his friend would remain rational and not jump to conclusions before they find out the whole truth about the matter, but a single look at Eren’s gloomy expression made his hopes flatter, not that it was a surprising at all considering the scene that greeted their eyes.They were all children!Eren stared
“What are you talking about?” the guard who was reporting to Sara asked in both confusion and horror, unable to believe what the demoness just said and her intentions of taking their princess with them and have her killed, at first, he thought he heard wrong, but the intense way the demoness was glaring at them, as if she couldn’t wait to unleash hell upon their heads, made him realize that she meant every single word.“And does your Lord know that the princess, who is his friend’s sister, is among the ones you are bringing?” Sara on the other hand asked calmly, her eyes seeing the insides of the demoness who was preparing herself for battle, which meant that things were far too serious than she thought, to the point where they couldn’t be solved peacefully.“And do you think our Lord cares about her identity when she is a suspect?” Andrea gave the black-haired girl a vicious smile, it was fun toying with her, throw
Monster!Deviant!Freak!The names kept on calling after her even when she ran as fast as she could, her legs carrying to an unknown destination, she didn’t know why she ran away, or why did she obey the mocking voice inside her head, even when she knew it wasn’t a friendly one nor did it wish her any good, all she knew was that she was standing out in the open streets, but felt as if the walls of the shack were enclosing on her once again, with nothing but the bitter painful reality suffocating her.Sara knew that the moment of reality would come sooner or later, the time when her cover would be exposed and the ones she cared for would know her reality, her lie, however, it was something she avoided thinking about, hoping that she wouldn’t be there in the first place to witness it, and for it to happen so soon, and in such a way when she didn’t even expect it or prepared her heart for the immense pain the revelation wa
It was all…surreal! And yet so bittersweet…Eren looked down at the girl sleeping on his chest, her beautiful face marred with the scars that told volumes about the amount of pain and agony this frail looking girl suffered, her face, tired with dark circles around her eyes, yet at the same time so relaxed and peaceful, it was a sight he didn’t see in so long, two years to be exact, when she was sleeping peacefully on this same particular bed in that same estate, the irony!Another thing that he found ironic was that even with all the years, all the tragedies, all the changes, Sara’s biggest concern was and still the acceptance of her family, her breaking was enough to prove it, and it made him think that she didn’t change that much after all, that the darkness she covered herself with didn’t reach to that pure soul of hers, and that for years, her heart was covered with a layer of ice, but it was never frozen.Ho
For some strange reason, Eren found himself in love with the view of his fair lady standing tall while he was on his knees in front of her, it didn’t feel degrading to him in any way, if anything, it felt as watching the full moon in the sky, or watching a temple where he is to worship, with that delicate dress she had in that showed how beautifully she had matured into the most perfect woman, the black short hair that framed her small pale face, the scars that told the story of her fall and rise, and the purity of her eyes revealing the universe that existed in that one small mass of beauty she was, she was gorgeous in every way, and watching her, just watching her, felt so satisfying the point where he couldn’t take his eyes of her.He knew she was hiding something; she knew that beside the pieces of truth that she kept to herself about last night, she was hiding something about that morning, he heard her heartbeats and even smelled her blood in the air, but by
Sara opened her eyes slowly and stared with confusion at the place she was in, wondering how did she get there, she was almost certain that she blacked out in her room after looking at the mirror, the child God wasn’t there, but something else was, she felt as if the floor suddenly disappeared from under her feet, and then everything went black, only for her to wake up in the forest.Not just any forest, Sara thought as she stood up, checking herself for the silver locks she saw in her previous dream, which were missing, her hands were dirty and smelled like grass and dew, her hair was short and black, and her scars were prominent as always, the air was humid and cold, the sounds were clear.It was not a dream, and yet, something was off about it, and not just the unknown way she ended up in the forest, recognizing the few darker trees and even the distant sound of the river, it was the edge of the dark forest, the border between the human kingdom and the shadows
It wasn’t a storm, no! Eren thought it was the sky breaking above their heads announcing the end of the world, it was all grey and threatening above them as dark clouds invaded the horizon, there was no rain, no snow, not even the dew that accompanied such weathers, there were only terrifyingly and abnormally strong winds with deafening thunder and striking lightning that split the air like mad rage, destroying whatever was in their way.“What in the…”“My lord, we got the reports from all empires and the human lands, the storm is there too!”“What?” Eren’s eyes widened in horror, for one, a massive storm such as this one was in no means nature’s doing, it was too massive and unnatural, and so sudden, the lightning seemed as if it was the spears of vengeful spirits attacking the poor lives that resided underneath the sky, it seemed like a…divine punishment, a deity pouring its rage on them all,
No...No...the words got stuck in Sara's as she tried to fight off the stranger who grabbed her throat, cutting off her air supplies and slamming her head forcefully on the crystal roof, with her divine half exhausted and pushed to the back, her human self couldn't resist the assault and partially gave up to darkness, unable to see what was happening to her but able to feel it.The weight on her abdomen, the man was straddling her, his filthy hand moving from her throat to her face, touching it delicately and tracing her deep scars, the touches felt more like caresses, soft, slow, and disgusting..."What an interesting little thing you are, Hybrid, I would have kept you for my own pleasure if I could!" Even in her semi-conscious state, Sara was able to differentiate the voice from the other three she heard before in her dream, the man was not one of them, which meant he was the second generation God Eren warned her about...Nov...Eren...The though
"You are up way too early, little sister..." Ripping her eyes from the tranquil scene of the forest being illuminated by the first rays of the sun, the scene was breathtaking but just like every day, she could help but find nothing rather than disappointment in it...Dawn was supposed to bring light, warmth, hope...but it wasn't bringing her any, nor was it bringing her sister back to her."Please tell me you haven't been awake all night!" Narrowing his eyes worriedly, Henry strode inside the room to reach the patio where his sister was standing, a sad look on her face nullifying the smile she tried to wear for his sake."I was just...a little anxious about today." Frowning at his sister's tired voice, Henry couldn't help but worry about his sister and her wellbeing during the upcoming journey she had insisted on taking..."You don't have to go, Nara, it doesn't have to be you, we can always send someone else..." Feeling the warmth and gentleness in her brother's
"Because, this is my destiny, I am a Goddess and I was destined for greatness, now I realize it, You, on the other hand, you are only dirtying this place with your presence!" once the words left her mouth, Sara regretted saying them, hurting the man she loved deliberately and watching the effect her words had on him was equally devastating to her, her heart was breaking simultaneously with his, echoing in the silent room, visible on the tense postures...They say actions speak louder than words but Sara knew that no punch was going to cause worse damage than the words she was spitting bluntly, no attack would have wounded him that deep enough to through him in a state of complete stillness, His eyes cast downward, his breathes coming out deep and calm, his shadows retreating to gather around his feet.Did she really do it? Break his heart enough for him to finally give up on her? Sara thought as she watched him thoroughly, her eyes desperate to make contact with his, unabl
"Don't!" Emerging from the shadows right before his fair lady's hand touched the filthier one of the man whom he considered as a father, Eren pulled her to his bare chest callously before wrapping his arms around her with no finness nor consideration to her trembling state, in fact, he was so angry at her he wanted to keep squeezing until he broke all her bones, every last one until she was no longer able to move or walk away from him in order to commit her heroic idiocies such as joining the Gods in their suicidal mission for the sake of the greater good.After his encounter with Historia's ghost, or whatever the thing he saw in the bottom of the river was, Eren wasted no time before flying to the center, cursing himself all the way for not thinking about it earlier, of course she would be in the center, it was the only place in their world where he didn't have eyes and ears in, the place where the dark energy was the weakest, it explained how he couldn't sense her presence
"What in the world is this none sense?" Squinting his eyes, Eren stated at the red headed princess, his mind refusing to comprehend the absolute absurdity that came out of her mind...When Andrea dared to once again bother him in his solitary where he mourned his broken heart, he was about to kill her but the words that came out of her mouth managed to save her life in the last second, for she had announced that his fair lady has finally been seen, and it was by none other than the redheaded princess who asked to meet him...Meeting the useless princess could wait, Eren first told himself as he searched the perimeter of the castle, looking for any traces of his fair lady, but he found nothing, not even her delicious scent which he craved like his next breath.She had hid her traces, that was Eren's first guess, but after hearing what the redheaded princess had to say, he started to think that his fair lady never showed up in the first place..."You can ha
"The once one shall be one, it must, it is the only way for this frail world to survive the death surrounding it, if not, darkness shall swallow it, the sun shall never rise again, and cold will seap through the fabric of life, cutting off the bonds, chasing away the warmth, children shall die in their mothers wombs, love bonds shall be severed, and the sun shall never rise once again nor shall the moon and stars shine, there will be nothing left of this world unless we save it...""What are you mumbling about?" Sara questioned warily, her heart still in the bedroom were she left an angry Eren who was probably raising hell just to find her, a sting of regret erupted inside of her but she quickly pushed it aside to focus on what the three silvered hair men were saying…It felt like being trapped into that horrible nightmare once again, when the Gods tried to absorb her powers, they looked no different from what they did back then, long white robes, long silver locks,
Stay away from me...Why? Eren asked himself for the millionth time, and was still unable to find an answer for it, everything was so perfect and then, out of the blue, his fair lady was acting as if his mere proximity was stabbing her right in the heart...Stay away from me...Those foor words, they were not spoken with hatred nor disdain, if anything, Sara seemed shaken, broken, and sad beyond words, her eyes held despair and pain, one that ran deeper than his understanding, one that cut his breath the moment he saw it, and he knew, even without her admitting it, that he was the source of that pain, and the thought of not knowing why was making him madder each second...But that wasn't all, Eren thought as he jugged his glass of alcoholic blood, for he had seen something else in her beautiful eyes, something he was so familiar with, anger at the world, it felt like her eyes were cursing anything that ever existed for some reason…What reason? What w
"Is he among them?" Seeing the sorrow behind the wariness and rage that filled Eren's eyes, Sara couldn't help but lower her eyes apologetically before nodding, Zaman was with Kalan and the other God indeeed, and the three of them were right outside the castle in the outskirts of the king's forest, their auras were sensible and clear for her but not to Eren, which only meant that they were waiting for her for some reason without wanting to alarm the demons.The question was, why?What did they want?"I don't know about Ebdi, and Jo..I mean Zaman's intentions are still not clear, but if Kalan is here, I can only think of trouble, I shall call for backup..." Eren said as he buttoned his shirt hurriedly before walking towards the door, hoping that his fair lady would agree to stay in the castle until he figures out what the God's Intentions were, but a single look at her determined face made him more certain of how futile it was to ask."If they wanted to attack the
How could one be so happy? How could one freeze a moment of happiness and imprisone themselves within it? Give up what was left of life with all the ups and downs and unknown futures just to keep on living one moment, over and over again?Smiling shyly, Rima placed her hand in Henry's without taking her eyes of his, it was all happening, and a part of her was still unable to believe it, she couldn't believe that after everything they went through they still survived to witness that day, the day of their union, not just as lovers, but as two leaders bringing together rivalry nations that didn't know of peace and harmony until lately, that alone was an impossible dream with a bloody history behind it to prevent it from becoming real, yet it was happening, it was a reality, a beautiful, almost unbelievable reality, just like the feeling of his hand in hers.Throughout her life, Rima learned the hard way that happiness was but a short incomplete phase, it was never there t
“A little of red on the lips would look great on you my lady, and it would suit your dress!” the demoness said enthusiastically, absorbed on finishing the last touches on Sara’s look, all while being oblivious of the mixed thoughts and feelings the young Goddess was having.“The lord isn’t back yet?” resisting the urge to sigh at the question that was asked several times already, the demoness put on a polite smile as she answered truthfully, “Not yet my lady, but I am sure he will be here soon.”You sure aren’t you, Sara asked in her heart while looking at her reflection, the demoness did a decent job at making her look presentable for the royal wedding which was happening that night, her hair was brushed neatly to frame her face, the fringe falling strategically on her face to cover the fading scars and then a small tiara was placed on top of it, the red rubies sat on a black base matched her dress, and the red col